I Made A Mistake
by Merciful Idiot
Summary: Valentine's Day has come, and only now has she realized who she truly loves... But, it's too late for Sayaka. Only a miracle can save her now. (prequel to Bueno Valentino Chapter 3) (based on a true story)


_Before you begin with this story, know that this is based almost exactly on the experience I had during Valentine's. That might be hard to believe once you're finished with it, but trust me, it really happened._

_I hope you enjoy this~_

* * *

A lone girl was rushing from place to place without any care for her own being, desperately looking around as she did so within the middle of the night, with heavy drops of water pouring all over her, making it hard to see anything. She hated everything about it, because the sound of the downpour disguised the fact that she was screaming out a single name with all her strength.

Magic was real, but only a true miracle could save her now.

_I made a mistake._

_And I can't fix it._

All this time, she'd been lying to her heart, and it was only now that she had finally realized what that feeling in her heart was. However, it was too late. It was far, far too late.

_Stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid!_

It was funny how this day had went, with her emotions going all over the place. She'd woken up so excited, pouring all her heart into making chocolates for the boy she thought she had a massive crush on for many years. She couldn't believe how stupid she'd been. It was true; she truly did like him, but not in _that _way_._ It was only his talent with the violin that she'd fallen in love with, because the music had the power to make anyone happy. As for the boy himself, he was kind, but spoiled, and kind of a jerk too. He'd accepted her chocolates with nothing more than a simple 'thank you' before resuming his violin practice, and she had been but one of many other girls who'd lined up to also give him gifts.

When he'd accepted her gift, she'd been so happy, but that feeling faded away quickly when she saw how nonchalantly he ate her chocolates. It had left a void in her heart...no. One could say that it was seeing him like that, that made her realize that there'd been a void in her heart for all these years.

It disgusted her. Her actions, her thoughts, everything, it all disgusted her!

That morning, she had a choice. She could've given chocolates to either the boy she'd had a massive crush on for years but mostly ignored her, or the friend who made her feel truly happy every time they were together.

She'd fooled herself into thinking that she had a chance, and instead of following her heart, she had followed her dreams. It was the wrong choice. She tried to justify it by thinking this and that. None of it worked. It had been totally the wrong choice, but at the time, she hadn't realized it.

She hadn't realized it until that afternoon, when she saw _her, _their eyes meeting... And neither of them said anything. She just stood there and watched as _she _turned around and left. If, during that exact moment, she had chocolates - even just one - it could've been a chance for her to give it.

But she didn't have any, and couldn't have given any.

The girl named Miki Sayaka had not taken the chance, or rather, she couldn't because she'd wasted it on a boy she thought she liked but didn't.

_I made a mistake._

If she could turn back time, she would pour out her heart into making all those chocolates for the one she loved with all her heart. She would package them well, and when that moment came, she would've taken a box out and hand it over to the redhead with a pounding heart. More than anything else in this world, in this reality, she regretted it.

_But it's too late..._

Now here she was, trying to fix her mistake. In vain.

All this time, she'd been lonely. But she never realized it.

And when she finally had, after all this time, she ran out of her house to look blindly for that one human being who made her feel at home, even though there was no chance for her to succeed.

Even as she tripped again, again and again and again and again and again and again onto the hard, wet streets and got smothered by more and more mud, she just got back up. She might've even got hit by a car once. But the pain meant nothing to her.

None of it meant anything to her, as all the while, she'd been holding and protecting a small plastic bag containing the leftovers of the chocolate she'd made that morning. There was no ribbon. There was no Valentine's card. There was no grace at all.

Compared to what she'd given Kyousuke, it was absolutely insignificant, but it was all she had left to give, after giving out her heart to the wrong person.

_I made a mistake, and I can't fix it._

There was no way she was going to find _her _in this heavy downpour, within this gigantic city with thousands of buildings all around her. The girl moved from place to place, never stopping to stay and call one place home. There was no address. The girl could be anywhere right now. Come to think of it, she might've even left Mitakihara by now, returning to Kazamino, considering that she only came in the first place to say hello to Mami. She had no idea where Kazamino was.

That chance had been her very last chance, and she let it slide away. In an alternate universe, she must've made the right choice and given her heartfelt present to the one she truly loved, and thinking about this frustrated her to no end.

She was on the verge of tears, and the only reason she hadn't cried up to that point was because she'd exceeded that threshold by far too much.

Collapsing, her magical girl outfit disappeared in place of casual clothes, which consisted of jeans and a t-shirt. Hardly the best things to wear in this harsh storm, where waterdrops poured down mercilessly and winds blew violently.

The blunette looked up to the black sky, letting the rain wash away the mud covering her face as she had finally ran out of breath. She couldn't open her mouth anymore, let alone speak, and she couldn't even get up, let alone run. She knew it was dumb of her to be out here, but she couldn't help it.

It was probably almost midnight already, meaning that Valentine's Day was almost over. She had failed. She had failed at absolutely everything in life.

She'd hoped against hope that something would happen, but as much as she hated to admit it, this was reality. In reality, there wasn't any Prince Charming to come to the rescue. There was no guarantee that the person one fell in love with would return their feelings, and to expect to be able to go back in time and fix one's own mistake was just...ridiculous. She'd already used her wish on something pointless.

"I made a mistake," she muttered underneath her breath, her voice lost to the weather.

"Sayaka?"

With a blank look, she turned to face a girl standing before her. Against all chances, she encountered the very last person she would want to meet in this sort of situation.

As their eyes met beneath the downpour, the raven-haired girl's cold demeanor suddenly changed as she quickly rushed to step besides Sayaka so that they both fit under her umbrella.

"What are you doing here?!" asked Homura in a concerned tone. Funny, she couldn't recall her ever showing emotions before.

"I made a mistake," repeated Sayaka.

By now, she didn't care about anything. Her last chance at salvation had dissolved into dust due to her own actions. It didn't matter who she talked to it about at this point.

"I'm sorry? Sayaka, what are you talking about?"

"That's not it at all... I misunderstood my feelings, and ended up making a mistake that I can't fix anymore," continued Sayaka, regardless of whether or not the other girl understood. "I gave away my heart to the wrong person, and used up all my savings for him. The one I really love is someone else completely, but... I'll never be able to find that person anymore. It's too late. It's just too late."

For a moment, there was only silence, accompanied by the continuous sound of trickling raindrops.

.

.

.

.

.

.

"Are you talking about Sakura Kyouko?"

_What?_

_Wait, what?_

_Wait, wait, wait just a second, what did she just say?_

_Somebody please tell me here, what did she just say? Did I mishear that or something? Hello? HELLO?!_

At the mention of the name, Sayaka's heart had skipped a few beats. Snapping out of her daze, her eyes widened as she opened up her mouth in utter shock, unable to say anything.

"H- h- **HOW DID YOU KNOW?!"** she yelled out, louder than necessary, and immediately regretted it. Color flushed into her face as Homura raised an eyebrow. If it had been a bluff, then she'd just gone and confirmed it.

"You told me before."

Her thoughts, blood, heart, everything was rushing like crazy. "Eh?! S- s- s- seriously?! I d- don't remember that! W- why would I tell YOU OF ALL PEOPLE that anyway?!"

"Well, you did, a long time ago. You must've forgotten." A tiny smile formed itself on Homura's face as she nodded lightly, as if she'd just made a private joke. "And it just so happens that I know where she is right now."

...

Was this...

Was this a miracle?

Had some god noticed how much she was in despair and decided to lend out a helping hand? Were all her prayers finally being answered?

Tears were beginning to drop down her face, but they weren't tears of sadness. No. Not at all. They were tears of nothing but pure joy, because even though she'd suffered so much, a ray of light had come her way to help assist her, defying reality in the process.

"C- c- can you can take me there...?"

"Uh, I suppose I could, but the journey's going to be a bit long. She's in Kasamino City. Besides," Homura dramatically flipped her hair, "Miki Sayaka, are you willing to go that far?"

It didn't matter.

Nothing mattered anymore.

Because this was the culmination of all her hope and despair, and never again would she make such a mistake. She was going to fix everything, RIGHT HERE and NOW!

"Akemi Homura... Thank you. I mean, just, THANK YOU SO MUCH!" screamed Sayaka, forcing herself to stand up with newfound strength, and using that strength to hug Homura tightly, who reacted with great surprise and tensed up. Even so, she continued to hug her. "THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU, _THANK YOU!"_

"Uh, you're welcome. As soon as you're ready, we'll go." Then in a flash of light, Homura disappeared and reappeared a meter away, having transformed into a magical girl. By then, the rain had lightened up, so there was no need for an umbrella.

"Homura... I'll never forget this. Really, never ever!" said Sayaka, wiping her face as she burst into her magical girl form. She still couldn't believe it. She still couldn't actually believe that this was happening, but since it was, there was no way in hell that she was going to let it slip past her again! "I've changed my opinion on you. You are officially the third greatest friend I've ever had."

"After Kyouko and Madoka? Fair enough."

* * *

Then, only a minute later,

"U- u- u- um, Homura, you know what? I'm regretting this now!" Sayaka yelled over the winds suddenly. "M- m- maybe we should just turn back!"

"Do you really think so?!" replied Homura, her eyes focused on the road ahead.

"...Well, no! Keep going! Don't stop! DON'T YOU DARE STOP, HOMURA!"

The two girls, Homura and Sayaka, were driving on a stolen motorcycle at top speed, with the whole world around them having gone still. Literally. Having the ability to stop time, the two of them were able to cross a large amount of distance in a short time. It was really convenient. Had it been anyone else, they wouldn't have been able to bring her to Kasamino before Valentine's ended.

For them, possibly over an hour had passed as they ran directly out from Mitakihara, but in reality, less than a minute had passed. So even though midnight was so close, they might be able to make it in time.

It was yet another miracle. Meeting Homura in the first place at this time had been a miracle, and not only that, but also how she knew who Sayaka was talking about, how she knew where that girl lived, how she was willing to take her there, and how she possessed the means to do so! It was just so incredible, so unbelievable. But it really happened.

She couldn't fail now. She _had _to succeed!

"We're here."

The duo stopped in front of a large, fancy hotel that towered over them. The environment around them was unfamiliar to her, but also, this building was noticeably the tallest around. All the others looked smaller somehow. Overall, Kasamino was very different from what Mitakihara was like. She gulped in nervousness.

"Once again, Homura, thanks. I really appreciate it."

Sayaka got off the motorcycle, slightly worried that the fact that she'd been crying before might be visible in her ears, slightly scared about how Kyouko might react, this and that, but ultimately determined.

"Good luck, Sayaka," said Homura.

"Okay, but remember, you're coming with m-"

Just as she'd turned around, she caught a glimpse of Homura touching her time-altering shield, and in the next split second both she and her motorcycle just disappeared into thin air, leaving Sayaka all alone to fend for herself.

Then, all of her confidence drained away.

_"HOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAA!"_

* * *

**Author's Note ((Warning, this is kinda long))**

_This one-shot carries on directly into Chapter 3 of "Bueno Valentino to the Puella Magi!" so if you wanna see how this continues, then head over there as soon as I've updated it! :P the reason why I didn't put this there was kinda because I didn't want to make the Author's Note over there too long.  
_

_This fanfic here, though I know it sounds fictional and all, is based on a real experience I had. A real, true, amazing, super super super amazing experience I had yesterday that makes me incredibly happy every time I think about it even now._

On the morning of this year's Valentine, I'd woken up early and went into the closest store as soon as it opened, before buying as many chocolates as I could afford and then rushing straight to school with the first minibus. Also, that night, I'd stayed up late preparing things, even having to improvise. Then, at school I gave all that stuff to who I thought was my crush... And all I got was a simple 'thank you' from her, despite all my efforts.

That's when I began to realize that I did something wrong. You see, she's kind of a mini-celebrity, and really popular at my school, so she's used to getting chocolates from guys already. I don't usually fall for people like that, but I had a conversation with her a few days ago that somehow convinced me to do it.

Yesterday, I'd acted like a total idiot. I spent nearly all my money on someone I thought I loved but...turned out that I was just following my dreams, instead of my heart. We weren't even close friends.

That was when I realized that the girl I really loved was someone else, but by the time I realized it, she had already gone home from school. And I had no idea where she lived. I was extremely depressed, regretted the choice I made, and wished to hell that I could turn back time and fix my mistake, even though I knew I'd never be able to do it, and that to do it another day would ruin the impact and just make things forever awkward...

That's when a miracle happened. A true miracle. A friend (who I always found a bit annoying) noticed my mood, and I told him 'I made a mistake'. He asked why, and I explained the reason. Suddenly, he knew WHO I was talking about (and said the same thing Homura did, though I have no idea why I'd have told him that...) and tehn FREAKING REVEALED THAT HE LIVED REALLY CLOSE BY TO HER. As soon as I heard that, I hugged him and started crying in joy, and practically begged him to take me there.

I had VERY little money left, just enough to buy one last bar of chocolate. Hardly anything compared to what I gave the other girl, but it was all I had, and this was going to be my last chance. It also turned out that my friend secretly had a motorcycle (most students in my school aren't allowed to use them), and he used it to take me to her house, after I washed my face and bought the chocolate. I was kinda scared, worried, and all, and just as I arrived at her doorstep and said 'hello', he abandoned me and left... Jeez.

_And in the end, I succeeded, and she really appreciated me giving her chocolate. At the very least, more than the other girl. I'm really happy right now. I'M REALLY SO HAPPY RIGHT NOW. _

_I just couldn't resist adapting my story into Sayaka's own story. It just seemed to fit so perfectly. That other girl and Kyousuke, my true crush and Kyouko, my 'friend' and Homura..._

_..._

_Um, you can review if you like~ this is kinda awkward now for me._


End file.
